Those that approach elephants do not dress in white, nor those that approach bulls in red, for these colours render those animals savage; and tigers they say at the beating of drums go quite wild, and tear themselves in their rage. — from Plutarch's Morals by Plutarch
Many herbs likewise have got their names of those things which they seem to have some resemblance to; as Hippuris, because it hath the likeness of a horse’s tail; Alopecuris, because it representeth in similitude the tail of a fox; Psyllion, from a flea which it resembleth; Delphinium, for that it is like a dolphin fish; Bugloss is so called because it is an herb like an ox’s tongue; Iris, so called because in its flowers it hath some resemblance of the rainbow; Myosota, because it is like the ear of a mouse; — from Gargantua and Pantagruel by François Rabelais
He thus describes it: Here we see the last of Louis XV's mistresses, sitting in her bedroom in that alluring retreat of hers at Louveciennes, near the woods of Marly, as she takes her cup of coffee from her pet attendant, the little negro boy, Zamore, as the Prince de Conti had named him, all brave in red and gold. — from All About Coffee by William H. (William Harrison) Ukers
are better instructed Rather
Moment I acquired literary fame, I had no longer a friend Money that we possess is the instrument of liberty Money we lack and strive to obtain is the instrument of slavery More stunned than flattered by the trumpet of fame More folly than candor in the declaration without necessity Multiplying persons and adventures My greatest faults have been omissions Myself the principal object Necessity, the parent of industry, suggested an invention Neither the victim nor witness of any violent emotions No sooner had lost sight of men than I ceased to despise them No longer permitted to let old people remain out of Paris Not so easy to quit her house as to enter it Not knowing how to spend their time, daily breaking in upon me Nothing absurd appears to them incredible Obliged to pay attention to every foolish thing uttered Obtain their wishes, without permitting or promising anything One of those affronts which women scarcely ever forgive Only prayer consisted in the single interjection “Oh!” Painful to an honest man to resist desires already formed Passed my days in languishing in silence for those I most admire Piety was too sincere to give way to any affectation of it Placing unbounded confidence in myself and others Prescriptions serve to flatter the hopes of the patient Priests ought never to have children—except by married women Proportioned rather to her ideas than abilities Protestants, in general, are better instructed Rather bashful than modest Rather appeared to study with than to instruct me Read the hearts of others by endeavoring to conceal our own Read description of any malady without thinking it mine Read without studying Remorse wakes amid the storms of adversity Remorse sleeps in the calm sunshine of prosperity Reproach me with so many contradictions Return of spring seemed to me like rising from the grave Rogues know how to save themselves at the expense of the feeble Satisfaction of weeping together Seeking, by fresh offences, a return of the same chastisement Sin consisted only in the scandal Slighting her favors, if within your reach, a unpardonable crime Sometimes encourage hopes they never mean to realize Substituting cunning to knowledge Supposed that certain, which I only knew to be probable Taught me it was not so terrible to thieve as I had imagined That which neither women nor authors ever pardon The malediction of knaves is the glory of an honest man The conscience of the guilty would revenge the innocent There is nothing in this world but time and misfortune There is no clapping of hands before the king This continued desire to control me in all my wishes — from The Confessions of Jean Jacques Rousseau — Complete by Jean-Jacques Rousseau
He then pulled off his coat, and buttoned it round her, put his hat upon her head, wiped the blood from her face as well as he could with his handkerchief, and called out to the servant to ride as fast as possible for a side-saddle, or a pillion, that he might carry her safe home. — from History of Tom Jones, a Foundling by Henry Fielding
away but I remembered
I was about to throw it away, but I remembered that it was inflammable and burnt with a good bright flame—was, in fact, an excellent candle—and I put it in my pocket. — from The Time Machine by H. G. (Herbert George) Wells
arrived but I received
The third day and the fourth arrived, but I received no answer to my letter: the complaints of a stranger against a favourite nephew were no way likely to succeed; so that these hopes soon vanished like all my former. — from Dalziels' Illustrated Goldsmith by Oliver Goldsmith
When homogeneous light is used, the fringes are broadest in red, and become narrower for each colour of the spectrum progressively to the violet, which gives the narrowest and most crowded fringes. — from On the Connexion of the Physical Sciences by Mary Somerville
And be it remarked, and it is worth noting, that he had not—as many a man in his position would have done—given one glance at the magnificent place with the thought that it would some day all be his. — from Wild Margaret by Charles Garvice
and bury it rather
If he must leave his money anywhere—and it was with a bitter pang that he faced the inexorable conviction that he could neither live forever, nor take his savings with him to the realms of bliss prepared for members of the Orthodox Church in good and regular standing—if he must leave his money behind him, he would dig a hole in the ground and bury it, rather than let it go to any one who had angered him in his lifetime. — from The Story of Waitstill Baxter by Kate Douglas Smith Wiggin
and before it reaches
Now we know that the sun has no motion round the earth, and that the equinox simply depends on the position of the earth’s equator in reference to the ecliptic; so that in order to produce the equinox when the earth is at E and before it get to A , its usual place, all we have to do is to turn the pole of the earth through a small arc of the dotted 33 circle, and so alter its position to that shown at F , when its equator and poles will have the same position as regards the sun as they have at A , so the equinox will happen when the earth is at E , and before it reaches A . — from Stargazing: Past and Present by Lockyer, Norman, Sir
alone but is rendered
This coincidence, which otherwise it might seem impertinent to notice here, derives some importance from the fact that it does not stand alone, but is rendered impressive by others, to be shown as we proceed; not to speak of the striking moral resemblances, which it will be no disparagement to the fame of the great Virginian to trace between the two. — from The Life of Francis Marion by William Gilmore Simms
This tab, called Hiding in Plain Sight,
shows you passages from notable books where your word is accidentally (or perhaps deliberately?)
spelled out by the first letters of consecutive words.
Why would you care to know such a thing? It's not entirely clear to us, either, but
it's fun to explore! What's the longest hidden word you can find? Where is your name hiding?